YouTube's app sometimes opens on a Short instead of your home screen. Google has not fixed it, but a Time Management setting can stop it today.
YouTube's app sometimes opens straight onto a Short, the site's quick vertical videos, instead of your home screen. Android Police reports it is a known glitch that Google has not acknowledged or patched. The best workaround is a lower Shorts time limit in the app's Time Management settings. A shortcut on your phone's home screen can also skip the problem.
A Short plays the moment the app launches and blocks the way in. In the writer's case, it stood between the app and the Subscriptions page. Multiple Reddit users have reported the same thing.
People first guessed it happened after watching a Short before closing the app. The report says it appears regardless of what you did last. It does not happen every time, so it seems random. Google has not acknowledged it, and no update has addressed it.
Open the YouTube app's Time Management settings and reduce the time allowed for Shorts. According to the report, this keeps Shorts from appearing before the homepage. It also keeps them out of the rest of the app, acting like a wall against vertical videos.
The catch is that people who like an occasional Short may find this too strict. When the prompt pops up, tap Ignore for the day. That brings Shorts back for a full day.
For those who want Shorts without limits, the report lists a few extra tricks.
The first two are less effective than the Time Management fix and can affect the app's overall performance. Expect some trial and error. Clear cache is not the same as Clear storage. Cache removes temporary files that may cause the problem. Clear storage wipes your account and settings from the app.
Press and hold the YouTube icon on your home screen or in your app drawer, then tap Subscriptions. That takes you to your subscriptions and past the home screen full of Shorts.
There is no word from Google on a fix or a timeline. The writer argues it is Google's job to acknowledge and patch the bug. Until then, the workarounds are the only option.
If YouTube opens on a Short, lower the Shorts limit in Time Management, or hold the app icon and tap Subscriptions.
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